January 10, 2009, Pat Zannie

Tips on Creativity and Shortcuts to Composition  

This was the title of Patricia Zannie’s presentation at the January 10^th meeting of the Senior Artists Alliance. This was a hands-on presentation where everyone made one or two collages with bits of paper and string. The presentation began with Ms. Zannie’s statement: “ I believe creativity is a universal, innate ‘human‘ process, and that individuals are unique and precious, having the capacity to develop themselves and express their own experiences of and in this life.” She uses bits of papers from all over the world. She uses glazes, wax, varnish, and found objects to create her collages. She says, “For me, Collage is the Jazz of the visual art forms”.  She shared her passion with us.

Patricia Zannie is a firm believer that creativity is a part of all of us and should be allowed to blossom.

Some of her suggestions for freeing ourselves to be creative are:

•  Don’t force your work. Go for a walk and let the creativity “bubble up”.
• Do something different.
• There is no such thing as perfection, so don’t seek it.
• Be open minded

Patricia Zannie’s suggestions for composition were many that we have heard before:

• Use contrast - light and dark - warm and cool - complements
• Think about boundaries by integrating them shape-to-shape, color-to-color. She showed us a collage where every boundary had been outlined in zigzag dark ink.
• Triangle shapes can become the lines of perspective

Ms. Zannie is an enthusiastic artist who thoroughly enjoys her art. Her collages of thousands of bits and pieces are amazing. The forty or so members present enjoyed her excitement and their own projects.

"Creativity and the philosophy and techniques of Cezanne, Matisse, Gauguin, and other rebel Master Artists who developed the concepts of Modern Art are the cornerstone of my intuitive approach to Art. The Japanese understanding of “Satori” or enlightenment permeates my personal and professional commitment toward Life as the “Greatest Art.” It is within this context that I have chosen to be a collage artist and to share this satisfying experience with my students."

Click for her web site 

November 15, 2008, Sedakiel Gebremedhin

NOVEMBER 15, SEDAKIEL GEBREMEDHIN

Over 20 members and guests attended this enjoyable afternoon

self-portrait

Sedakiel Gebremedhin was born in Ethiopia. In 1999, his family immigrated to the United States. Shortly after moving to the U.S., Sedakiel began attending the Maryland College of Art & Design, where he learned about such artists as Pablo Picasso and Jasper Johns.  This experience helped him learn new ways to modernize Ethiopian artwork. At the Maryland College of Art & Design, Sedakiel received the Chairman of the Fine Arts Award, an honorable mention and the Dean’s Choice Award. In June 2005 Sedakiel successfully completed a solo art show in Washington, DC.  Approximately 250 VIP guests attended, including members of the business and diplomatic communities, the DC Mayor’s office and professors from the School of Art & Design at Montgomery College, which was previously the Maryland College of Art & Design.  The show included works of art that dated from 1999-2005. After a short stint away from school, Sedakiel returned to the School of Art & Design in 2007 and received a 2008-2009 Montgomery College Foundation Scholarship to continue his studies.  He is currently developing a portfolio and will attend a 4-year art institute.

ALSO ON THE PROGRAM WAS DAVID EPSTEIN, MFA, DIRECTOR, SCHOOL OF ART & DESIGN MONTGOMERY COLLEGE, TAKOMA PARK CAMPUS. 

HE SPOKE ABOUT THE NEW ART FACILITIES AT THE CAMPUS.

October 2008, Professor Riggs

OCTOBER 11, PROFESSOR ED RIGGS 2:00 to 4:00, Montgomery College,Rockville Campus, TC Building, Room 148 The first Photoshop session we had a couple years ago was enjoyed by all.

Over 20 members attended the Photoshop session with Professors' Riggs and Johannsen

 

It was titled "Corrections and Adjustments to Improve Digital Photographs"

This was photo correction, hands-on, for our members using Photoshop.

We were given a photograph on each computer, and with Professors' Riggs and Johanssen guidance, members learned to crop, color correct, and sharpen the photo.

The handouts are now on this website.

Click here for the color correction handout.

Click here for the sharpening handout.

We all thank you both for your efforts, your caring, your enthusiasm...!!

June 2008, David Little

David Little spoke at our June 14 General Meeting at the Davis Library

 

 

A graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art with a BFA in Fine Arts, he was awarded a Henry Walters Traveling Fellowship and has received grants from Baltimore City and the Maryland State Arts Council.

 

 

His imagery involves the exploration of the human figure and its juxtaposition with architectural structures in environments that he creates from his memory.

 

Twenty seven members attended

June 2008, Henry Moore NY sculpture exhibit

  Several SAA members of Professor Poliszczuk's Montgomery College sculpture class went on his class day trip to the New York Sculpture Garden to view the Henry Moore exhibit.

Turn on your computer speakers, then click for a video tour of the "Moore in America" exhibit by the Time Magazine art critic.

May 2008, Governor's Award

The Senior Artists Alliance received the First Annual Maryland Governor's Leadership in Aging visual arts group award. It was presented by Governor O'Malley at a reception at the Annapolis Senior Center on May 13. Maryland bought Renata Vaccari's pastel, shown below, to illustrate their poster.   Thank you, Governor O'Malley SAA attendees were Mary Ellen Gordon, Paul Pincus, Renata Vaccari, Marianne & Paul Giguere, Stuart Glickman Lt. Governor Brown, Governor O'Malley, and the legendary journalist, Helen Thomas presented our award. Ms. Thomas, the guest speaker, delivered a hard-hitting manifesto on the decline in the quality and ethics of political reportage and presented her view of the Bush administration's policies, morals and actions....

May 10, 2008, Sumita Kim

Sumita Kim, future chair of the art department at Montgomery College, spoke May 10 

Her lecture, “One Has to Forge One’s Own Path,” offered us an introspective journey through her art. Professor Kim spoke of two forces that face most artists: the need to follow one’s artistic instincts and desires and the struggle between the demands of everyday life versus your art.

She explained that pain, struggle, control and self-doubt are motivating forces behind her work. Her abstracts, in particular, illustrate a soft visual texture in contrast to the harshness and reality of life.

Her latest work is comprised of soft sculpture. She is currently incorporating photography as another medium to express her art.